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Why I Chose Homeschooling

I didn’t decide to homeschool lightly. In fact, it took me far longer than many to actually step forward and commit to it. In many ways, I think it took far too long. My eldest, Danielle, was a teenager before I finally decided enough was enough and took back control of something I should have had a say in long before.

For many, homeschooling is not an easy choice or one they first arrive at. It is found at the end of a dark road, after much heartache, resentment and stress.

If you are thinking about homeschooling and just not sure you can do it…

4 thoughts on “Why I Chose Homeschooling”

Danielle’s public school history seems almost identical to my own. I was “socially myself” (haha) and would not apologize for it. In incidents similar to that of Danielle and her counselor, I was constantly being pulled out of class by my school nurse and asked utterly offensive questions like; how long have you been smoking marijuana? How long have you been sexually active?- I was twelve years old, had never smoked in my life, and definitely NOT sexually active. I was a complete bookworm and young activist with a profound passion for PHILOSOPHY! The following week I was once again pulled out of class by the nurse only this time she was not alone. She started again by asking me how long I had been sexually active to which I said “never” she rolled her eyes in complete disbelief and then had me stand and asked me to put my hands on my lower stomach. She began pointing to my stomach and talking to what appeared to be a student nurse. She then said “do you know that you are probably pregnant?” It was an utterly demeaning experience for me at that young age. There were many more similar incidents for the remainder of my school experiences. Being naturally eccentric and outspoken is hard in our society, add poor and Mexican to that list and it becomes agonizing. Fortunately for me, I have the gift of unyielding curiosity and intellect to rely on.

I’m 29 now (and a philosophy major with my own little 9 year old brilliant oddball. I pulled her out of school just two weeks ago after her teacher was publicly humiliating her on a daily basis.

My mom has been an educator in the public school system for 25 years so I know that many teachers care and are passionate about igniting a desire to learn in students , just not nearly enough of them. The teachers who do care are powerless in such a deeply flawed system and are discouraged by it.

I have had many experiences of my own – not in school settings, but in other ones – that have convinced me that there is something very broken about our society. The level of control and invasiveness that others in positions of power try to exert is deeply disturbing.

Congrats on deciding to homeschool your “brilliant oddball” – I have no doubt she will be better off!

I had been back and forth with this for a long time and the decision was made when my 6 year old had the amplifier for one of her hearing aids stolen on the bus.
My daughter is out spoken, blunt, very curious and hard of hearing. She is so proud of her Deaf culture and wears it proudly on her sleeve! She also didn’t understand why someone would take her hearing aid out of her ear and keep it. She told me about it and was heartbroken. When the issue was brought up to the Principal and the School Board they told us that there was nothing to be done about it. This is the same as if she had a cell phone that was lost or stolen.
I was furious. This is a piece of equipment that she needs in order to function and receive an education in this setting. It would be like taking and artificial limb or a cane for a blind student. I was very angry, and didn’t know what to do. I pulled her out of that school and decided that there is no way I was ever going to let my daughter endure that kind of treatment ever.
The Deaf have fought a long battle to have their own language, to get jobs to be seen as what they are and get the few things that they have and this is really a huge step backwards, plus she is only 6!!!
I decided that I didn’t want my kids to think that being Deaf or Hard of Hearing wasn’t important enough to be given the same rights as others as well as the ones afforded to them by the ADA and that I could better give them the things that they need than some people that don’t really care about their well being anyway. I am so glad that I did and wouldn’t go back for anything.

Wow, Latasha, I hear you on that. I’m glad you did what was best for your daughter and that she will now be in a safe environment where she is not picked on for being different. I think that in many cases, that is what school does, first by isolating children to only their age-mates, and then by applying an education that is geared to not take in different learning styles or individual quirks (which all of us have). I hope you will keep reading. I just ran across a great website as well that really has me excited – http://lifelearningmagazine.com/1404/how-they-learned-to-read-and-write.htm